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Primary sourceBook1899

The Development of Capitalism in Russia

Vladimir Lenin (as Vladimir Ilyin) · 1899

Lenin's 1899 economic study arguing that capitalism was already transforming the Russian countryside, written during his imprisonment and Siberian exile.

This major economic treatise, written by Lenin in prison and exile, shows his early development as a Marxist theorist.

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Title page of Vladimir Ilyin's (Lenin's) 1899 book 'Razvitie kapitalizma v Rossii' in Russian, published by M. I. Vodovozova in St. Petersburg, priced at 2 rubles 50 kopeks.
Vladimir Lenin (as Vladimir Ilyin), The Development of Capitalism in Russia, 1899. St. Petersburg.

About this source

What it is

This book was researched and written by Lenin while he was jailed and then exiled to Siberia in the late 1890s. Published under the pseudonym 'Vladimir Ilyin' in 1899, it argued against Narodnik thinkers who believed Russia could skip capitalism and move straight to socialism.

Why it matters

The book helped establish Lenin as a serious Marxist theorist and shows the intellectual groundwork behind his later revolutionary strategy. It also reveals how his family, especially his sisters and wife, helped him gather research materials while he was imprisoned and in exile.

Look closer

  • Why would Lenin use a pseudonym to publish this work?
  • What does the amount of research behind this book tell you about Lenin as a thinker, not just a revolutionary leader?
  • How might writing from prison and exile have shaped the tone or urgency of the book?

This book is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Vladimir Lenin on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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